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Innovations in Energy Technologies Focus on Practical Solutions

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2013 Clean Energy Challenge

 

Where are the smartest minds in clean energy putting their development efforts? Instead of “pie in the sky” ideas, it appears energy technology developers are focusing on solving real problems with practical solutions.

Earlier this month, seventeen “early-stage” companies and student finalists competed for $300,000 in prizes at the 2013 Clean Energy Challenge in Chicago.  The Challenge brought together some of the most promising clean energy businesses and university programs in the Midwest with the potential to bring game-changing innovations to the marketplace.  These businesses and programs represented various aspects of clean energy, from biomass development and smart grid to improved wind turbines and advanced bearing technologies.…
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Potential New Opportunity for California Direct Access

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As many of you probably recall, California Direct Access (DA) program is capped by legislation.  To get space under the cap in order to sign up for Direct Access service, a customer or the customer’s agent had to submit the customer’s eligible accounts into a first come/first serviced enrollment period.  Each phase of the enrollments under the cap was filled within moments of the start of the first come/first served submission period.…
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Renewables and the Law of Unintended Consequences

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As with any big and complex undertaking, like the worldwide movement to integrate substantial amounts of renewable power resources into the grid, there are unintended and adverse consequences.   This is proving especially to be the case with wind facilities in Europe and the United States.

One of the underlying themes at an inaugural two-day workshop, “Wholesale Electricity Markets – Hurdles to Overcome,” hosted by Northwestern University’s Kellogg School at the end of January was that the natural intermittency of wind velocities, combined with tax credits, produces two important unintended adverse results.…
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How Customer Choice Saved Illinois $31 Billion

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December 16th, 2012 marked the 15th anniversary of Illinois’ electric restructuring legislation being signed into law.  In 1998, most Illinois customers received rate reductions mandated under the 1997 industry restructuring law, and one-third of larger industrial and commercial load became eligible to choose alternative suppliers in 1999.  Over time, more and more customers became choice-eligible.  Today, all customers served in investor-owned utility areas can choose their supplier.…
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What the DP&L Proposed Electricity Security Plan Means For Ohio Business Customers

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Last week, Dayton Power & Light (DP&L) filed a proposed Electricity Security Plan (ESP) with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). The proposed ESP calls for a transition to competitive market-based auctions to meet the supply needs of non-shopping customers. The proposed plan covers a 5-year period, Jan. 1, 2013 through Dec. 31, 2017.

Important elements of the proposed ESP include:

 
Transition to competitive bidding
DP&L is proposing to blend existing Standard Service Offer (SSO) rates with competitive market-based auction rates beginning January 2013. The blended SSO rate will be increasingly made up…
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How PUCO Approval of AEP’s Electric Security Plan Impacts Businesses in Ohio

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On Aug. 8, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) approved AEP Ohio’s modified electric security plan (ESP), which includes a schedule to transition the state’s electricity market into a competitive electricity market by June 2015. This new order will become effective with bills rendered September 1.

Important elements of the modified ESP approved by PUCO include:

Load auctions blended with base rates over transition period
During the three-year duration of this newly adopted Electric Security Plan, electric generation rates will be frozen at current levels.  AEP will blend these electric generation rates with load auctions to be held…
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